The Vasa Museum houses the world’s only surviving 17th-century ship and is one of the foremost tourist sights in the world. It is one of those places that you have to see to believe. I put some pictures in the photo gallery, but as usual my photographic skills are weak.
The mighty Swedish warship, the Vasa, was the most powerful vessel of her day. Commissioned by King Gustavus Adolphus in 1625 as one of a fleet of battleships in the war against Poland, she was constructed by a very experienced Dutch shipbuilder named Henrik Hybertsson. The Vasa was capable of holding 445 crew members and weighed nearly 1,200 tons. The ship was covered with majestic carvings which were believed to have been painted in bright colors. It is quite a spectacle to see.
Tragically, the ship keeled over and sank on her maiden voyage in 1628, killing nearly fifty people. In 1961 the wreckage was salvaged by the Swedish Navy and preserved in a temporary museum until the opening of the Vasa Museum in 1990. The ship was in remarkably good condition for having been submerged for more than three hundred years. Apparently, the Baltic Sea does not provide a good habitat for salt water worms that typically eat away at sunken wooden ships. In addition to seeing the huge ship in the museum, you can also see a 1:10 scale model of the Vasa, showing what she would have looked like in all her glory. Exhibitions, interactive computer models, displays and audio-visual presentations tell of the salvage operation, life on board ship and sea battles of the period. You could easily spend a whole day in awe at this wonderful museum.
In the 17th century there were no scientific methods of calculating a ship’s stability. It was not uncommon for large warships to heel over and sink. Cargo ships were designed to carry the cargo very low in the ship but warships were designed with the guns placed high to improve their military effectiveness. The Vasa actually had two rows of guns — 64 huge iron cannons in total. There were several tons of stone stored in the bottom of the ship for ballast but it was not adequate. It is believed that as the ship began to sail, the winds pushed the ship over, the guns came loose and rolled to the other side causing the ship to lean further, and then water flowed into the lower gun ports holes and the ship sank
An inquiry was held but final accountability was never established. There was plenty of blame to go around. Admiral Fleming could have stopped the ship after some initial stability tests indicated there would be a problem. King Gustavus Adolphus was anxious to acquire a ship with as many heavy guns as possible and had personally approved the design of the ship. Shipbuilder Henrik Hybertsson could be blamed for building the hull too narrow — he died a year prior to the inquiry making things more complicated. Some would blame Captain Söfring Hansson for sailing a brand new ship with open gunports. One thing is for sure. With todays digital design and simulation tools such a diasaster would have been averted.

• Stockholm Nov. 2004 – Photo gallery
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• Oslo Nov. 2004 – Photo gallery
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